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#264727 - 07/09/2005 17:47 Everybody else getting less spam?
CrackersMcCheese
pooh-bah

Registered: 14/01/2002
Posts: 2489
I used to get 50-60 porn emails per day and now I have zero. Did something happen a couple of months back that I missed? Anyone get shutdown?

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#264728 - 07/09/2005 17:55 Re: Everybody else getting less spam? [Re: CrackersMcCheese]
tonyc
carpal tunnel

Registered: 27/06/1999
Posts: 7058
Loc: Pittsburgh, PA
I've seen a few accounts of big spammers getting knocked off, but I haven't personally seen any benefit from it. I'm getting about the same amount of spam now, but all but 1% or so gets filtered by Popfile.

Maybe your email provider added some filtering upstream?
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- Tony C
my empeg stuff

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#264729 - 07/09/2005 18:05 Re: Everybody else getting less spam? [Re: tonyc]
CrackersMcCheese
pooh-bah

Registered: 14/01/2002
Posts: 2489
I don't think they (NTL) do very much in the way of anti-spam. Well at least I'm seeing a reduction - lets hope its a sign of things to come.

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#264730 - 07/09/2005 18:35 Re: Everybody else getting less spam? [Re: CrackersMcCheese]
andym
carpal tunnel

Registered: 17/01/2002
Posts: 3996
Loc: Manchester UK
About a year or so, Demon put a spam filter into my mail account without me knowing and it dramatically reduced the number of spam emails from over 100 a day to none. It's only recently that one or two have started trickling through. It's also interesting that me and my colleagues have started getting spam on our work addresses too, same emails as well. Interesting that this starts after Siemens take over the IT stuff.
_________________________
Cheers,

Andy M

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#264731 - 07/09/2005 19:13 Re: Everybody else getting less spam? [Re: CrackersMcCheese]
matthew_k
pooh-bah

Registered: 12/02/2002
Posts: 2298
Loc: Berkeley, California
Yup, it's been a drastic reduction in the last few months for me too. I now forward all my email to my cell phone. My university does have a spam filter, and I've set it to send anything >70% probably spam to the bit bucket. However, I had that set up long before the spam level decreased. I've never had someone tell me they sent me a message I didn't get.

Matthew

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#264732 - 07/09/2005 19:17 Re: Everybody else getting less spam? [Re: CrackersMcCheese]
bonzi
pooh-bah

Registered: 13/09/1999
Posts: 2401
Loc: Croatia
Yes, some 25-30% less. I forward all my mail to my Gmail acct. Several months ago the number of spam messages touched 1000 (I just let Gmail delete those older than a month), now they hover around 700.
_________________________
Dragi "Bonzi" Raos Q#5196 MkII #080000376, 18GB green MkIIa #040103247, 60GB blue

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#264733 - 07/09/2005 21:58 Re: Everybody else getting less spam? [Re: CrackersMcCheese]
g_attrill
old hand

Registered: 14/04/2002
Posts: 1172
Loc: Hants, UK
I've seen a reduction here over the past few months. I already have reasonably aggressive blacklisting on the server (Spamhaus+CBL, also no connections from China, Korea, Taiwan, Turkey etc.) but the reduction over that is quite large.

Gareth

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#264734 - 07/09/2005 22:25 Re: Everybody else getting less spam? [Re: CrackersMcCheese]
drakino
carpal tunnel

Registered: 08/06/1999
Posts: 7868
My spam has gone down as well, but mostly due to my own policies. I use the trick of drakino_whatever @ miniinfo.net for things, and if one address starts getting spam more then anything else, it gets blocked at the server.

I don't trust a lot of the blacklists that accept submissions from everyone without review. I found it was blocking legitimate things like billing statements from MMOs, because the same servers distribute MMO gaming newsletters that one person marked as spam instead of unsubscribing from. I use one blacklist on my server that definitely only stops spam, but it honestly blocks maybe 10% of the traffic that my personal blacklist does.

I still despise any method that generates more work for the people sending e-mail, like the users who insist that I must click a link before approving their e-mail. If everyone switches to such an annoying system, no-one would get any e-mail, since the response to approve it would be met with a "you must approve this" and start a viscous cycle.

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#264735 - 07/09/2005 23:10 Re: Everybody else getting less spam? [Re: CrackersMcCheese]
FireFox31
pooh-bah

Registered: 19/09/2002
Posts: 2494
Loc: East Coast, USA
My spam at work seemed to drop from 25/week to 15/week in August. However, I seem to be hit by only a few spammers (similarities in headers and bodies), so maybe one just quit or was murdered.

Does anyone else see the once-almighty BrightMail as totally worthless? My Earthlink account apparently has it, but it filters essentially no spam, despite my relentless marking. I thought BrightMail was THE best spam filter, with millions of spamtrap addresses and human confirmation?

My work mail is now protected by ultra-agressively-targeted custom mailfilter rules, filtering the specific footprints of the apparently few spammers. Footprints are largely provided by SpamAssassian tagging in the headers, which just keeps getting more and more specific. That's backed up by the Spam Bayes plugin for Outlook, demolishing any other remaining spam (even using my IMAP connection).

The only stuff that sneaks by (because my mailfilter rule isn't perfected yet) are the image-only spams with Bayesian poison (strings of legitimate text randomly pulled from documents). The HTML links are so obfuscated with "cid" links, #, ?, and redirects that SpamAssassian can't assign the HTML_IMAGE_ONLY tag. And the Bayesian poison are full sentences of common words. Thank heavens they all have a similar forged HELO tag in the header. Trusty mailfilter wins again.
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FireFox31
110gig MKIIa (30+80), Eutronix lights, 32 meg stacked RAM, Filener orange gel lens, Greenlights Lit Buttons green set

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#264736 - 07/09/2005 23:26 Re: Everybody else getting less spam? [Re: FireFox31]
tfabris
carpal tunnel

Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31604
Loc: Seattle, WA
Quote:
so maybe one just quit or was murdered.


*reads article*

*SPUTTER*

Maybe the reduction in spam is that the spammers are all now fearing for their very lives?
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Tony Fabris

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#264737 - 08/09/2005 01:13 Re: Everybody else getting less spam? [Re: CrackersMcCheese]
msaeger
carpal tunnel

Registered: 23/09/2000
Posts: 3608
Loc: Minnetonka, MN
I have been getting more on my time warner email account. I usually get a few a day but a few months ago I got less.

I would really like to get less junk mail I get a credit card app from the same company just about every day.
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Matt

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#264738 - 08/09/2005 01:33 Re: Everybody else getting less spam? [Re: CrackersMcCheese]
Ezekiel
pooh-bah

Registered: 25/08/2000
Posts: 2413
Loc: NH USA
If you're running low on spam, here's a can to tide you over.
-Zeke


Attachments
264580-spam.gif (491 downloads)


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#264739 - 08/09/2005 09:34 Re: Everybody else getting less spam? [Re: msaeger]
DWallach
carpal tunnel

Registered: 30/04/2000
Posts: 3810
My spam arrival rate at my Rice account has remained relatively constant (100-150 messages / day). However, my aggressively trained DSPAM is doing great. It's also got the tagging generated by SpamAssassin running before it (thus, allowing DSPAM to decide on the relative worth of the SpamAssassin filters). All said and done, I'm seeing a 99.5% accuracy rate, or about one error every other day. I can live with that. Generally speaking, the errors I see these days tend to be legit emails ending up in the spam bucket, rather than spam getting through. Also, I forward my Rice email to GMail, adding a third level of spam filtering. In recent weeks, it seems that GMail has tuned their spam filters to be more aggressive and is catching more and more of my legit mail in the spam box. When GMail first started, I never had to go look through the spam box.

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#264740 - 08/09/2005 11:05 Re: Everybody else getting less spam? [Re: msaeger]
FireFox31
pooh-bah

Registered: 19/09/2002
Posts: 2494
Loc: East Coast, USA
Quote:
get less junk mail

Credit cards:
I submitted a form to the three credit reporting agencies (TransUnion, Equifax, Cyberian<?>) freezing credit card offers for two years. The form was mailed to me by some agency, so there's a chance it wasn't legit and I gave all my personal information to some crook. Regardless, I get no more offers. It doesn't hurt that I called company that offered and asked to be removed from their mailing lists. Look on the credit agency websites for info on removal.

Catalogs:
Call the catalogs and ask to be removed. 90% of them seem obligated to remove you from their list. Other catalogs are one-shot-deals from "leased lists", so you won't see them again.

Junk flyers, cupon books, and other trash:
Try filing to have your contact info removed from the Direct Marketing Association (DMA). They say it will take 3 to 6 months to remove you, with another 3 months for the junk to stop. I am on month number 8 and the junk seems slightly less, but I still get all the cupon crap. Of course, from their website, you can pay them to remove you quicker. The NERVE of those demons, taking your info from your mortgage company or credit card, then asking that you pay for your freedom... if it even works. Mailing the request may have never reached them, considering my first attempt got a "Return To Sender". Can you believe it! I sent a letter to the KINGS of the postal system, the ones with the tighest grasp on every mailbox in the nation, generating unspeakable volumes of dead-tree mail; and they couldn't receive my letter. I love how citizens are powerless against these massive organizations... unless you pay.

I did a whole rant about reducing junk mail somewhere else in Off Topic, but I can't find it now. Good luck.
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FireFox31
110gig MKIIa (30+80), Eutronix lights, 32 meg stacked RAM, Filener orange gel lens, Greenlights Lit Buttons green set

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#264741 - 08/09/2005 18:48 Re: Everybody else getting less spam? [Re: FireFox31]
canuckInOR
carpal tunnel

Registered: 13/02/2002
Posts: 3212
Loc: Portland, OR
Quote:
Quote:
get less junk mail

Credit cards:
I submitted a form to the three credit reporting agencies (TransUnion, Equifax, Cyberian<?>) freezing credit card offers for two years. The form was mailed to me by some agency, so there's a chance it wasn't legit and I gave all my personal information to some crook. Regardless, I get no more offers. It doesn't hurt that I called company that offered and asked to be removed from their mailing lists. Look on the credit agency websites for info on removal.

Is https://www.optoutprescreen.com/ what you had? I did some poking around, and this site was linked to directly from the credit reporting agency websites, so it seemed legit. If you don't want to do it online, they also have an 888 number. Essentially what it's doing is telling the credit reporting agencies to disallow companies to look at your credit report for the purposes of pre-screening you for credit offers.

Quote:
Junk flyers, cupon books, and other trash:
Try filing to have your contact info removed from the Direct Marketing Association (DMA).

Website: http://www.dmaconsumers.org/consumerassistance.html

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#264742 - 09/09/2005 02:01 Re: Everybody else getting less spam? [Re: canuckInOR]
FireFox31
pooh-bah

Registered: 19/09/2002
Posts: 2494
Loc: East Coast, USA
I believe I got the credit card opt-out notice in the mail. I was suspicious because it came for really no reason. Also, it listed four credit reporting agencies instead of the main three, which was suspicious.

But yes, I do seem to remember calling a number and reading off every last speck of personal information in my life. I was terrified that it was a scam and all my over-caution, paranoia, and downright vigilance for privacy was being undermined by my desire for it. I swear I kept a record of it.... I'll have to check against the link you posted. Thanks for that.
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FireFox31
110gig MKIIa (30+80), Eutronix lights, 32 meg stacked RAM, Filener orange gel lens, Greenlights Lit Buttons green set

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#264743 - 09/09/2005 03:13 Re: Everybody else getting less spam? [Re: canuckInOR]
loren
carpal tunnel

Registered: 23/08/2000
Posts: 3826
Loc: SLC, UT, USA
Quote:
Junk flyers, cupon books, and other trash:
Try filing to have your contact info removed from the Direct Marketing Association (DMA)
Website: http://www.dmaconsumers.org/consumerassistance.html

Haha... the link "How to remove your name from mailing lists" goes to a 404

http://www.dmaconsumers.org/cgi/offmailinglist
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|| loren ||

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